Stories from the Trees

October 7, 2017
7:00 PM, DeMeester Recital Hall
York College of Pennsylvania

Visiting artist and 2017 Guggenheim Fellow Paul Rucker, whose exhibition REWIND was on display in the York College Galleries until October 21, returned by popular demand for an encore performance in DeMeester Recital Hall (beside the York College Galleries in Wolf Hall) on Saturday, October 7 at 7:00 p.m. Stories from the Trees is a multi-disciplinary performance with Paul Rucker performing a live soundtrack on cello to re-imagine vintage lynching postcards that have been animated. Based on one survey, 4,742 African Americans were murdered by lynching between 1882 and 1968. Others were lynched as well, but not nearly in the same numbers- including people of Caucasian, Chinese, Latino, and Jewish descent. This performance will bring to life the different scenarios of lynchings, places where communities gathered with women and children proudly watching these atrocities. The images will suggest those of postcards that were made from photographs of lynchings as common practice. Many of these postcards are from the personal collection of the artist, Paul Rucker and were on view during the show. The artist answered questions from the audience of mostly students for 90 minutes following the performance.